The Rock City Hotel located in Kwahu-Nkwatia was lightened up with the long-awaited 2021 residential Chartered Institute of Ghana Educational and Annual General Meeting (AGM) dubbed “Increasing Insurance Penetration and Coverage; Role of Regulations, Innovation and Ethics,” last week.
The 3-day conference took off with paper presentations. Papers presented included Increasing Insurance Penetration and Coverage: Role of Regulations, Innovation and Ethics by Wilson Tie an experience professional Insurance Practitioner and entrepreneur. Other papers presented included the New Insurance Act 10601, by Kofi Andoh Deputy Commissioner of Insurance, The Role of Ethics in improving Insurance Penetration and Coverage led by Bishop Asante Marfo-Ahenkora. The third discussion was on “Insurance and Innovation, lessons from Covid-19 Pandemic” by Tavona Biza, CEO of Old Mutual Life Ghana.
The conference was well attended by the CIIG members all over the country, over 150 chartered Insurers with representatives from Insurance Institutions like the Ghana Insurers Association (GIA), Insurance Brokers Association of Ghana (IBAG), Chartered Insurance Institute of Ghana (CIIG), National Insurance Commission (NIC), and Insurance Awareness Group where all represented.
At the opening ceremony, Insurance professionals were greeted and ushered into the posh Rock City Hotel by council members of CIIG lead by it’s President Tawiah Ben-Ahmed and Vice President Dr. Geraldine Abaidoo. Seated at the high table, included the Commissioner of Insurance Dr. Justice Yaw Ofori, Mr. Wilson Tei-Chairman Insurance Awareness Group of Ghana, Mr. Larry Jiagge-Managing Director-Risk Management and Advisory Services (RMAS), Kwame Gazo, Lydia Lariba Bawa. The conference kick off at exactly 10:00am that day with an opening speech from the President of CIIG.
CIIG’S PRESIDENT SPEECH
Mr. Tawiah Ben-Ahmed used the occasion to thank all members present at the 2021 CIIG Educational Conference and Annual General Meeting. He was happy to note that 150 Insurance professionals and practitioners from different sectors of Insurance were participating in the conference.
According to him it was unfortunate the CIIG could not organize a residential conference in 2020, for obvious reasons of Cocid-19 Pandemic and the need to ensure our compliance with safety protocols including restrictions on large public gatherings. As you are aware, Covid is still around whiles we are seeing some good progress in fighting Delta Variant, a 4th wave has emerged with a new variant of Covid-19 which the world Health Organization (WHO) has described as Omicron.
As a variant of concern according to the WHO classification, the experts have concluded that, omicron variant spreads faster and causes more severe illness. Follow members, I encourage all of us to respect the Covid-19 protocols strictly during all the activities of this conference and AGM. As Insurers, we owe it to ourselves, colleagues and family to protect ourselves as we adapt our way of work and life to keep our focus on our goals through the Covid-19 crisis.
Importantly, the President reminded members that the Insurance professions and practice is to ensure the Integrity in the country, so that Insurance and Practice conforms to Internationally accepted best practice. He indicated that CIIG objectives and core values of professionalism, Integrity and excellence keeps members awake. However, he pointed out that the third residential Annual conference and AGN since the inauguration of the Institute in October 1972. He used the opportunity to acknowledge his predecessor Bishop Asante Marfo-Ahenkora for blazing the trail in the residential conference in accordance with the Constitution of the Institute.
“In line with the Defend and Grow strategy, the strategic consideration of the 2021 CIIG Education conference and AGM, was to provide the most relevant professional development opportunities for members, connect and network among ourselves, discuss critical issues which impacts our professional practice and provide relaxed environment to recharge as a collective to improve Insurance contribution to the development of Ghana. So not only are we going to learn, unlearn and relearn through professionally open and robust discussions, we will also be making time to socialize and unwind as the hectic 2021 Covid-19 business year draws to a close.”
The conference ended with an AGM and three focused Group discussions, covering General Insurance, Life and Health. The topic for the focused group discussions in respect of General Insurance was in Influx of bond claims and the way forward which was led by Alfred Yaw Ofori-Kurogu, Former Managing Director GLICO General and current Managing Partner of AP & L Consult and Legal Alliance.
The focused group discussion for the Life Insurance Group was on the topic, enhancing Life Insurance Operating Profits under the new minimum capital requirement which was led by George Addison, CEO of Vanguard Life Assurance.
While for the first time, the third focused group discussion was on Private Health Insurance which was also led by Emmanuel Oteng Tuffour of Metropolitan Health Insurance on the topic the Impact of Health Service Provider Tariff increases on pricing and growth.
